Tag Archives: authority

Last week, while selecting some avocados in the produce aisle, I heard a loud gasp which caused my attention to be diverted to a woman who had just started an avalanche of sorts over by the oranges. As she restacked the fruit I distinctly heard her mutter, “Stupid girl! How could you be so clumsy?” In that moment I imagined her as a five year old child being berated by her mother, in the same tone, for the same offense.

From an early age, I remember learning that spoken words have power, both to hurt and to heal. My mom taught me to use the words that came out of my mouth with care, particularly when they were directed towards others. What I did not understand then was that the way we talk to ourselves can have just as much power to transform our minds—in both good and bad ways.

In the first testament, the Bible contains an historical timeline of accounts surrounding King David, beginning in his childhood and culminating with his death. David, like you and I, encountered some great highs and some equally low lows. In today’s Scripture, we find David battling with what I believe to be borderline depression. He was tired of being chased by his enemies, tired of being misunderstood, and likely tired of waiting for God’s promises to come to fruition. Can you relate?

Buried in the words of Psalm 42 is a valuable lesson on self-speak that we would do well to put into practice. David knows he’s feeling particularly low. So he wisely acknowledges and labels his feelings. But then David uses the power of his own words to construct a ladder which he uses to climb his downcast spirit out of the pit of despair he’s found himself in.

Here are the four rungs David put in place:

HOPE:He looks his despair squarely between the eyes and directs himself to “Put your hope in God.”

PRAISE: Next David invokes a new (contrary) attitude by saying, “for I will yet praise him.”

AUTHORITY: He reminds himself who his Lord is by identifying Him as, “my Savior and my God.”

RECOLLECTION: Lastly, David takes a decisive walk down memory lane when he declares, “therefore I will remember you”—which I am sure brought him back to thoughts of himself as a boy killing a lion and then the giant, Goliath, and having escaped from the tip of Saul’s spear a time, or three.

Do you feel in a state of despair today? Have you been passively listening to (and agreeing with) all the negative self-talk that comes along with it? Do not lose heart—USE YOUR WORDS! It’s time you quit listening to yourself, and start talking back to yourself instead. Speak out transformative words of hope and praise. Remind yourself aloud who your Lord is and recount the many times He has redeemed your circumstances, been true to His promises, and shown His kindness towards you.

Do you have a direct sales business? Are you trying to reach new customers or maybe just get your name out there? Or do you have a customer group and all you hear is crickets?

Truth be told, I hear crickets ALOT. There are days when everyone is joining in the fun (like for a contest or to give an opinion) then there are days when I can’t even get a “like” on a picture.

I have been looking for the right mix to keep things going in my group. It is a lot of trial and error. So, I have been on the hunt for tips to get things moving again…

I started my VIP group because everyone does in direct sales, right? Facebook is crazy! Who can figure out who is going to see what post?

#1 – Get to Know Your Tribe

I thought I knew my tribe – women who enjoyed hearing about the products I sell along with tips on how to use them. Some days I wonder. You need to get to know them better. This way you can have conversations and get to know how you can better serve them.

#2 – Market Research

Okay, I am not talking about a full research study. Listen to the questions being asked and the conversations happening. Then create your posts around those questions. It’s what your audience wants and you are just answering the need.

#3 – Accessibility

Being active doesn’t mean you are obsessed with posting and responding to your group, you are just accessible to your followers. Check in periodically during the day so when they ask you a question, you can send a comment, and as a result they feel more connected to you.

#4 – Be the Authority

Having your own group will make you an authority in your own niche. Don’t let it scare you – if you don’t know, find out. You want to be the go-to person and viewed as an expert in your field.

#5 – KLT

You want to build your know-like-trust factor. Being in business, we know you are genuine and likable, so it will be easy to build your know-like-trust factor just by being you and providing AMAZING value to your tribe.

#6 – Promo

Believe it or not, your main goal is NOT to promote your offers, but it is a nice perk. Your captive audience, know, like, and trust you so they will take you up on your offers. Just don’t slam them every day!

#7 – Help Others

This is the most important thing as far as I am concerned – you get to help your tribe. You have the chance to help out wherever and whenever there is a need. Someone asks a question, you can help by giving advice. Maybe they need to vent about something (anything). You get to be the listening ear. I love being able to help so many on a daily basis. Above all else, provide value for your audience.

Of course, once you get to know them, you will need to know how to get them to engage in the group.

The best advice I go was to have a customized URL for your Facebook group. I love saying, “Come join us on Facebook at Hope’s Purse Closet”. Potential members can search for the link and it pops right up.

How many Facebook groups do you belong to? Have you noticed, they all have a daily thread or theme days? Some will take a topic to talk about, or ask a question, or allow others to promo their business. Daily threads work are great for participation.

The key is to have a mix of general conversation starters, industry related threads, and promotional opportunities for the members. To help things along, you will want to be the first to post a comment in the thread to get it rolling.

As the group grows, schedule a monthly rotation of the threads instead of weekly to keep things fresh. I’m working towards this in my VIP group, just trying to find the right mix.

I believe in consistency in your posts so I use Cinchshare to help me keep consistent. I have 2 posts a day in my group which are scheduled and then I add to it as I find random things. I know, it kind of goes against the recommendations BUT I did say my group was a work in progress. If you use a scheduler, be present in your group. It doesn’t mean you should not stop in, comment or respond in a timely manner to comments. I have alerts set up so when people comment, I respond in a timely manner.

I would love to have you share your best suggestions for getting and keeping your Facebook Group engaged. Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!

Good Morning and welcome back to Relax, Refresh and Recharge Sunday. Over the last several days I have been struggling with authority and submission. Being basically a newlywed – I struggle going from a totally self-sufficient, impulse decision maker individual to submitting to my husband’s authority in our household and being a team in our marriage. Living life under someone’s rules has been a struggle for me since my early years in addiction. Surprising since I am usually a people pleaser.

My devotions this morning was on just this topic – okay God, I am getting the message.

“Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake; whether it be the king, as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well (1 Peter 2:13,14).

I found it interesting that the writer said that if we find it difficult to live under the physical authorities in our life, we usually have difficulty submitting to the will of God in our lives. The issue of control keeps rearing its ugly head. Hubby calls it an attitude when I think it is really Satan trying to cause turmoil in my life. I have to blame someone, right?

Truth be told, I do have difficulty submitting to the will of God when I don’t know what his plan is which is why I try to practice TRUST AND BELIEVE everyday. As a leader in my business, I have been struggling lately with living my business life by God’s will. I say the words and I place my business at his feet but when I can’t see the outcome, I quickly want to grab back control and handle things in my own way. I remind myself daily that God has a plan for putting people on my team or as a hostess or a customer. Sometimes it is a lesson that I need to learn while other times it is something that they need to learn. The learning lesson for me is a whole lot easier to understand than the lesson that others need to learn. In the midst of the devotion, it talked about the people that are in authority over us – how sometimes we don’t like them or respect them personally but true submission to God’s authority is that we will RESPECT the position that they have in authority over us. Such a powerful reminder of true submission to God’s plan. I can remember telling Belinda when she did things that I didn’t like as a child – “I may not like you right now but I will ALWAYS love you”.

So, are you living your life (personal and business) under true submission to God? Do you quickly grab control back when you can’t see the outcome or the plan fall into place? As for me, I will start each day placing my life under God’s submission and as hard as it might be – I will LEAVE IT there. I challenge you to do the same.